Slides in this set

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THE USA UP TO 1920 Industry and farming had been growing steadily since 1860 The country had a lot of resources A lot of workers ­ many immigrants were willing to do any work Railways, mining and manufacturing were all strong Americans believed in rugged individualism ­ self help They were isolationist ­ they did not want to get involved in Europe's problems…read more

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REPUBLICAN POLICIES Normalcy: letting the USA get back to life as it had been before the war Isolationism: not getting involved in anyone else's affairs Low taxes: this helped businesses to grow Laissez-Faire: letting businesses grow without government help Tariffs: high taxes on foreign goods meant that Americans would buy American goods…read more

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THE BOOM In the 1920s, profits made by American industries rose massively The biggest economic boom came to those in the industries making consumer goods (for example fridges, vacuum cleaners) Wages rose throughout America, so people's confidence grew The most important industry that boomed was the motor industry By 1930, there were 30 million cars on the roads Many Americans wanted a share in some of the profits, an so bought and sold shares in companies…read more

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THE MOTOR INDUSTRY Henry Ford was the pioneer of mass production ­ he set up a system; parts of the car added as it travelled along a conveyer belt This was known as the assembly line He developed the Model T (a car) and made them affordable The Model T had many impacts on the USA, including: Roads built Increased amount of shopping Tourism increased New industries…read more

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WEAKNESSES IN THE US ECONOMY Some major industries did not benefit (for example coal and textiles) Some industries could not export their goods due to high tariffs set by other countries in retaliation to the USA's high tariffs Farmers produced far too much food, and so prices were very low Many ordinary Americans did not benefit; including industrial workers and Black Americans 42% of the population lived below the poverty line…read more